Category:Louisiana Dioceses
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Archdiocese of New Orleans
Archdiocese of New Orleans History of the Catholic Church in southwest Louisiana began in the mid-1750's when settlers came from France, Spain and Germany, many accompanied by their own priests. When England expelled the French colonists from eastern Canada, also in the middle of the 18th century, many of these came to south Louisiana where previous settlers had the same French language and Catholic faith of the exiles. The first church parishes in what is now the Diocese of Lafayette were þSt. Martinville, established 1756; St. Landry, 1776, and later Grand Coteau, 1819, and Vermilionville (now Lafayette) 1821.þ All of southwest Louisiana then belonged to the Archdiocese of New Orleans. The Diocese of Northern Louisiana, first known as the Diocese of Natchitoches, was erected in 1853. It became the Alexandria diocese in 1910. The civil parishes (counties) of southwest Louisiana were carved from the Archdiocese of New Orleans and the new Diocese of Lafayette was formed 1918.
Archdiocese of New Orleans abuse Five priests had been accused of sexual abuse up to January 2003. Archbishop Alfred Hughes who was appointed in 2001, suspended at least two priests because of abuse allegations that were already in personnel files; the men were not publicly identified, 2002. It was estimated the 1-2% of priests in the archdiocese had been identified as abusers, of the 20 clerics, 10 were deemed credible, seven not credible and three inconclusive, 1950-December 2003.
- Alfred Hughes Archbishop of New Orleans, previously top aide to Cardinal Bernard Law, in the Archdiocese of Boston.
New Orleans secret trial Three unnamed New Orleans priests were ordered by the Vatican to be put on secret trial, and the archdiocese said it is under no obligation to reveal the verdicts, revealed 10 October 2004. In a sharp reversal, the archdiocese announced their names - Revs. Michael Fraser, Gerard Kinane and Bernard Schmaltz, 12 October 2004.
Madonna Manor Orphanage (later, Hope Haven and Madonna Manor) Residential center for abused, neglected, and delinquent youth, converted into an N/D institution that provides services for children and adolescents under the auspices of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans. Half a dozen men filed lawsuits alleging they were sexually molested, beaten and frequently humiliated by nuns, priests and civilian staff members at Madonna Manor, 1950s-60s. The suits are based on plaintiffs' experiences between the ages of 4 and 14. In many cases they name staff members and recount specific beatings or episodes of rape or sexual molestation. A few also allege abuse by adult strangers whose identities the plaintiffs hope to learn as the lawsuits' investigative process unfolds. Other complaints are more generalized, describing a climate of physical and psychological abuse in which nuns beat them severely and told them they were worthless, or that no one loved them.
- Madonna Manor lawsuit Stacey Brown and Ted Lauche filed suit against Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans back in March 2005.
(alphabetical listing)
[20 offenders identified, 20 listed]
Boudreaux affair Rev. Claude Boudreaux, Jesuit, accused of abuse. Removed 2005.
Calamari affair Rev. Paul Calamari (1944-) ordained 1980 for Archdiocese of New Orleans. Assignments in Diocese of Wilmington: St. Mary of the Assumption, Hockessin, 1997; Holy Cross, Dover, 1999; chaplain in hospital ministry with residence at St. Peter, New Castle, 2000; removed from ministry 2003.
Cinel affair Rev. Dino Cinel admitted abuse of boys, 1991.
Claudine affair Rev. Marie Claudine settled alleged abuse, 1998.
Coyle affair Rev. Charles G. Coyle, Jesuit, was sued for alleged abuse of 4 boys.
Davidson affair Rev. Carl Davidson accused of abuse, removed.
Fraser affair Rev. Michael Fraser of Visitation of Our Lady Catholic Church was placed on indefinite leave and forbidden to function as a priest, 22 January 2004 after the archdiocese received a complaint alleging that Fraser sexually abused a child in the mid-1980s while he served at Sts. Peter and Paul parish in Pearl River. The archdiocese's lay review board judged the complaint credible. Fraser denied allegation.
Hidding affair Rev. Thomas J. Hidding, Jesuit, removed after allegations, 2002.
Howell affair Rev. Gerald Howell (Jerry, brother of Rodney Howell, Howell affair in Archdiocese of Santa Fe) accused of abuse, suspended from the priesthood in New Orleans after a church tribunal investigated molestation allegations against him after a New Orleans television station reported that several people had accused Howell of abuse in the 1970s, 1992.
Keane affair Rev. Patrick Keane accused of abuse. Admission 2002.
Kilgour affair Rev. James Kilgour was sued for alleged sexual molestation of 13 year-old boy, 1987.
Kinane affair Rev. Gerard Kinane, who worked at churches in Chalmette, Slidell and Houma, had been placed on administrative leave and relieved of duties as a priest, having been accused of sexual abuse in 1973 and 1975, late March 2004. A man accused Kinane of abusing him while he was 14 at St. Mark Catholic Church in Chalmette.
Knoth affair Jesuit priest, Rev. Bernard P. Knoth, president of Loyola University in New Orleans resigned, accused of sexually abusing a student in 1986, while he served as principal at Brebeuf in Indianapolis, 7 October 2003
Matherne case As a New Orleans auxiliary bishop in 1998, Rev. Aymond kept Catholic schoolteacher Brian Matherne on the job despite an allegation that he had molested a student years earlier. Aymond said he dropped the matter without alerting police because the alleged victim would not speak to him. That young man later went to police himself, and authorities said more children had been molested in the meantime. Matherne has since been sentenced to prison after admitting that he abused 17 boys.
Nowery affair Rev. C. Richard Nowery, Holy Cross, removed by Bishop Hughes due to allegations, 2002.
Pellettieri affair Rev. Joseph F. Pellettieri was suspended while the archdiocese investigated allegations of past abuse in another diocese, April 2002.
Porte affair Nun Cheryl Porte, Marian, accused of abusing a girl, settled 1996. Removed.
Rogge case Rev. Norman Rogge was convicted of sexual abuse in 1985.
- See also Rogge case
Sanders affair Rev. Patrick Sanders, pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Belle Chasse, lost his priestly functions after an archdiocese review of allegations by two men who were 16 at the time of a 1993 trip, when he was the vicar at Resurrection of Our Lord Parish in New Orleans, 23 April 2004. Removed 2004.
Sax affair Rev. John C. Sax admitted molesting child.
Schmaltz affair Rev. Bernard Schmaltz, who last served at St. Clement of Rome in Metairie, had already left the priesthood when the most recent sex abuse claim was lodged in January 2004. He stopped working as a priest in 1993 to devote himself full time to fending off a molestation lawsuit. Named in the New Orleans secret trial, sued the archdiocese for publicly identifying him as an alleged child molester. Lawsuit dismissed due to statue of limitations. Denied charges.
Diocese of Baton Rouge
Diocese of Baton Rouge Diocese reported that six priests had been removed from active ministry because of accusations of molesting minors, April 2002. National Audit reported 10 diocesan priests had been accused by 20 victims of sexual abuse of minors throughout the diocese's history, 21 February 2004.
Diocese of Baton Rouge settlements Diocese reported spending $2,072,274 on victims' compensation, legal fees, therapists and counselors for victims and priests, part of which was covered by insurance, 21 February 2004.
Three altar boy lawsuit Three former altar boys sued the Diocese of Baton Rouge on Thursday, claiming they were molested by a priest in the 1970s, 26 October 2006. All three men, along with 11 others who have previously filed suit against the diocese, claim they were molested by former priest Christopher Springer (Springer affair). The diocese has settled lawsuits with six of the former altar boys. “It’s the same pattern over and over and over again,” said Felecia Peavy, the Houston-based attorney handling the cases for the 14 altar boys. “The number of allegations continues to grow, and I don’t know if we will ever know how many victims are out there.”
(alphabetical listing)
[10 offenders identified, 4 listed]
Fendin affair Rev. Charles Fendin sued for alleged abuse 1987.
Lemoine affair Rev. Daniel Lemoine accused of abuse, settled.
Springer affair Rev. Christopher Springer accused of abuse by 14 former altar boys (Three altar boy lawsuit) three of whom claim they were molested at the church rectory in New Roads, sued 2002. Removed.
Sullivan affair Bishop Joseph Sullivan (1921-1984), in office 1972-84, had allegations of sexual misconduct made against him by a man who was 17 when Sullivan sexually abused him in 1975. The diocese settled a lawsuit with the man and removed the bishop's name from a high school, November 2004. The Sullivan affair was shrouded in near-total secrecy through the settlement and sealing of a lawsuit never to be heard in open court. The public and the church laity know only as much about this case as the plaintiff, the church hierarchy and the courts are willing to reveal, which is almost nothing.
Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux
Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux Three priests had been accused of sexual abuse up to January 2003. Bishop Jarrell let the Rev. Robert Melancon continue working in a parish, settling an abuse accusation in 1993. Before the Melancon case trial, the district attorney said he would seek to have Bishop Jarrell held in contempt of court for refusing to say whether church authorities were investigating other complaints of sexual abuse against priests. The bishop then answered that they had not.
(alphabetical listing)
[3 offenders identified, 4 listed]
Bergeron case Monsignor Albert Bergeron, one of Bishop Jarrell’s top aides, pleaded guilty to lying to a grand jury investigating Melancon. Two of Father Melancon’s accusers testified that they sometimes met him at Monsignor Bergeron’s rectory, where there was a supply of pornography.
Cavell affair Rev. Lawrence A. Cavell (1957-), former pastor of St. Mary’s Nativity Church in Raceland was suspended for an incident of impropriety, “solicitation of a minor,” that occurred before he was ordained c. 1988. Cavell is considering a departure from the priesthood altogether.
Kujawa case Rev. Patrick Kujawa (1969-) an associate pastor at Holy Cross Church in Morgan City, but was residing at a monastery in St. Mary Parish, after he was put on probation for a guilty plea to 15 counts of possessing child pornography in 2000. He was arrested by federal agents having hundreds of images of naked children on his computer, February 2004. He pleaded guilty to federal child-pornography charges, 5 April 2004, sentenced to 10 years in jail.
Melancon case Rev. Robert Melancon’s sexual abuse led to the diocese paying a victim $30,000 in 1993. Then he was accused in 1995 of repeatedly raping a victim in a church rectory in the 1980s, from the age of 8, and was sentenced to life in prison.
Diocese of Lafayette
Diocese of Lafayette Established in Louisiana in the southwest portion of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, between the Atchafalaya and the Sabine rivers, in 1918.
Diocese of Lafayette abuse Msgr. H. Alexandre Larroque, vicar general of the Lafayette Diocese acknowledged more than 40 “problem” priests, 1994. Larroque said a sexual abuse review board existed, though he acknowledged that in his 37 years with the diocese the board had never conducted a formal investigation. The diocese declined to release information, April 2002. Bishop Michael Jarrell installed 18 December 2002.
- Lafauette national audit Diocese reported that 18 priests have been accused of sexually abusing 26 minors since 1950. Accusations against seven of the priests were found not credible, while 11 priests had been removed from their ministries after the church found credible evidence of sexual abuse involving minors, reported 3 January 2004. Fifteen priests in the Diocese of Lafayette abused or molested 123 children between 1950 and 2002, and the diocese paid about $26 million in claims filed by the victims, reported 4 February 2004.
(alphabetical listing)
[40 offenders identified, 12 listed]
Alexander affair Rev, Joseph Alexander of St. Anthony of Padua Church in Eunice was accused of molesting a boy in 1963 when he was a Benedictine brother in Owensboro, which he acknowledged had happened. Subsequently placed on administrative leave June 2002.
Arceneaux affair Rev. Jules Arceneaux, who served at St. Francis Regis Church and St. Catherine Church, was placed on administrative leave pending a federal investigation into pornography discovered on a church computer, 15 July 2004.
Engbers affair Rev. John Engbers at Our Lady of Perpetual Help, molested five girls in one family, was removed from priesthood. Sued.
Fontenot case Rev. Ronald Lane Fontenot (Jean Paul), Lafayette LA priest, arrested in Spokane, WA, Convicted. 1-year sentence, 2003.
Gauthé affair Rev. Gilbert Gauthé served junior ministries in Broussard, New Iberia and Abbeville, all in the Diocese of Lafayette. And at each stop parents accused him of molesting their young sons. Early on, Gerard Frey, the bishop of Lafayette, advised complaining parents to send their children to confession to expatiate their sins. Later, diocesan officials pulled Gauthe out of a church and installed him as chaplain of the Boy Scouts. In 1977 he was given his own church, St. John's, in the French-speaking and deeply religious bayou hamlet of Henry and in five years there, he would rape and sodomize dozens of local boys between the ages of 6 and 13.
- Gauthé arrest Gauthé was the first Catholic priest in the US to face a criminal indictment on multiple charges of child molestation, having 100-plus victims until his arrest in 1983, pleaded guilty after a plea bargain to sex charges involving 11 boys, one of who was abused for six years and his two younger brothers were also abused. The true number of victims has been estimated to be c. 150. Gauthé took pornographic pictures of the abused, fondled them during confessional and stuck his hand under an altar boy’s robe while sitting on the altar during Mass. Arrested after one of his victims was hospitalized with a bleeding rectum in 1983, Gauthé was sentenced to 20 years in prison (released after 10 years), 1984.
- Church hush money In 1983, six families sued the diocese and Gauthé. “But the courthouse crowd in Lafayette is a clubby set -- the church settled secretly and the judges sealed the papers.” Gauthe was secretly moved to a treatment center in Massachusetts. “It was church hush money,” observed Kiefferd Gayneaux, who lives in Henry. “Families 'round here couldn't look each other in the eye.”
- Gaskall accusation Scott Gaskall, a Gauthé victim, got Cajun lawyer, Minos Simon, to file a lawsuit in 1984, rejecting the church's entreaties to hush it up, got a million-dollar settlement. “Man, the whole damn thing was wrapped in a cocoon of secrecy.” Simon recalled. “The church knew damn well this dude had gone ape-wild down in Henry.”
- Church cover-up Diocese knew of Gauthé’s pedophilia from the mid-1970s when parents complained he had kissed two boys. The response was to transfer him to another parish, 10 miles down the road. Msgr. Larroque was found to have shuttled Gauthé from parish to parish before parents finally went public with their complaints in 1983.
- Gauthé’s whores Intensely Catholic community’s description of the victims after they had received compensation from the church, who they also made pariahs. Most of the victims have nothing to do with the Catholic church as they tried to recover their lives.
- Gauthé settlement 35 or 37 boys received settlements from the church that ran into hundreds of thousands each. In the two cases that went to trial, the awards exceeded $1 million each.
- Gauthé recidivism After release from prison, now defrocked, Gauthé moved to Waskon, TX., near Shreveport, where he was soon arrested, pleading no contest to a charge of fondling a 3-year-old boy but was only sentenced to supervised probation, as the Texas authorities had no knowledge of his criminal history, 1996.
- Gauthé rape arrest Gauthe arrested for raping a 12-year-old girl in 1980s, a sister of one of his altar boy victims, but it came to nothing because a provision in his plea bargain was immunity against further complaints on acts that had occurred before 1983.
Gilbert affair Rev. Aldeo Gilbert was sued for alleged abuse, 1993.
Herpin affair Rev. Michael Herpin accused of abuse of child, Removed 2002.
Limoges affair Rev. Robert Limoges removed from priesthood, no details known.
Primeaux affair Rev. David Primeaux accused of abuse, admitted, 2002
Prinz affair Rev. Gerald Prinz alleged abuse of boy.
Richard affair Rev. Mark Richard, a priest who soon after being ordained was charged with suspicion of indecent behavior with a juvenile, the police having found Richard parked in a car with a 14-year-old boy at 1:30 a.m. in various stages of undress and a condom next to the car. Richard was suspended from the priesthood while the district attorney's office continued its investigation. After Richard and the boy both denied any wrongdoing, charges were dropped. Soon after he was cleared of the criminal charges, Richard was quietly forced to resign.
Rogge case Rev. Norman Rogge was convicted of sexual abuse in 1985.
Diocese of Lake Charles
Diocese of Lake Charles Territory of the Diocese of Lafayette was reduced by almost half in 1980 with the erection of the Diocese of Lake Charles.
[No offenders identified, 1 listed]
Smit affair Rev. Gerard C. Smit (1924, ordained 1950 for Diocese of Lake Charles, La.Assignments in Diocese of Wilmington: Immaculate Conception, Elkton, 1987; removed from ministry 1996; last known address, Bear, Del.
Diocese of Shreveport
Diocese of Shreveport Diocese created in 1986.
Diocese of Shreveport abuse Diocese has had one case of sexual abuse, National Audit 2002.
(alphabetical listing)
[1 offender identified, 2 listed]
Anon priest Priest was dismissed in the late 1980’s and has since died.
Rizzo case Antonio J. Rizzo, youth minister at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Shreveport was arrested on three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile for allegedly giving alcoholic beverages to teen girls and making sexual advances toward them, March 2004. Rizzo was accused of inappropriately touching girls ages 15 and 16 when he worked at the church at Patton at Anniston avenues in 2003 and 2004. arrested 11 August 2005.
